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You Can�t Keep A Good Woman Down
A Former Lawyer Refuses To Succumb To Scandal

Alicia Florrick (Julianna Margulies) thought she had the ultimate suburban life. Her husband, Peter (Chris North) a State Attorney mingles amongst well-to-do professionals and politicians.

Publication date: March 23, 2010

You Can�t Keep A Good Woman Down
A Former Lawyer Refuses To Succumb To Scandal

Alicia Florrick (Julianna Margulies) thought she had the ultimate suburban life. Her husband, Peter (Chris North) a State Attorney mingles amongst well-to-do professionals and politicians. Though trained as a lawyer, her husband�s more than adequate income allows her to be a stay at home mom, taking care of their son and daughter, Zach and Grace (Graham Phillips and Makenzie Vega respectively).

Her perfect world comes crumbling down though when Peter appears in a scandalous sex tape with prostitutes paid for with government funds. Soon thereafter media coverage, including downloadable copies of the tape, force the attorney to resign. An emotionally torn Alicia must stand beside Peter at the resulting press conference, pretending to be supportive.

Yet things will get much worse. Peter is convicted for misappropriation of government funds, a charge he denies based upon what he believes is a misinterpretation of his contract. Due to undeniable video evidence, however, he cannot deny his infidelity to Alicia, and their children must inevitably face the scorn associated with their father�s shameful acts. Additionally, Alicia is no longer welcome in her previously elite social circles, shunned due to Peter�s stupidity.

In jail and oblivious to the extensive media coverage involving his affair, Peter is convinced that the scandal is merely a small blemish on his record, and a full rebound will be possible upon his release � that may occur sooner than he thinks. Alicia believes otherwise however, and must soon resume her work as a full-time lawyer in order to repay substantial legal fees, plus care for herself and Grace and Zach in absence of their father.

Immediately Alicia is propelled into no nonsense legal work, despite being absent from the field for 13 some years. Though cordial with her cheating, imprisoned husband her relationship with Peter remains purely for practical reasons. Unaware of the extent of his affair�s damage, Peter is foolish enough to think things can be patched up � especially when Alicia agrees to conjugal visits with him. Yet those visits are not motivated by compassion or love, but by her career: Peter has access to a death row inmate whose knowledge of a crime is pivotal to a current case.

Alicia�s fierce, no holds barred approach to law quickly earns her the respect of colleagues. Within only a short period of time Alicia�s ascent will reach heights far beyond her initial expectations, rendering Peter�s scandal an almost forgettable incident.

�The Good Wife�s� (2009) premise is not so far-fetched. A most notorious parallel can be drawn between Bill Clinton�s sex scandal of the late 90s, where despite his poor judgment, his wife continued her successful career. Other parallels can be drawn between recent political sex scandals, including a nearly identical Beltway prostitution scandal involving New York Governor Eliot Spitzer and the 2004 outing of gay New Jersey governor Jim McGreevey.

The program�s realism has undoubtedly struck a note with audiences. �The Good Wife� has been well received by critics, viewers, and its originating network CBS � who has authorized further production of the show. Already, with only 10 episodes under its belt, the series has earned Golden Globe and Satellite Award nominations.